In our Happiness Workshop we share several tools that are powerful and yet easy ways to increase your baseline for happiness. They are part of the 10 Happy Habits that we share with our participants. These tools have been scientifically proven to not only increase, but to help sustain happiness in your life. Three of these practices have been given the title the 5-3-1 practice by the Center for Healthy Minds. They are so simple and yet so impactful. I have talked about them in previous posts, but I like the simplicity of referring to them as the 5-3-1 practice and hope that it serves as a nice reminder for all of us of 3 easy steps we can take each day that will help us choose happiness.
5...
Meditate for 5 minutes each day. This can be a simple breathing exercise, a guided meditation, a loving kindness meditation, whatever suits you and it can change from day-to-day depending on your mood. There are amazing proven benefits of taking just 5 minutes each day to meditate. Whether it's to start off your day on the right foot, or to serve as a way to de-stress and calm your mind mid-day or to reset and release at the end of the day, meditation is key.
If you are interested in a few that I love, take a peek at the "Meditations" tab and give a few of them a try!
3...
Journal or think about 3 good things that happened today and/or 3 things you are grateful for today. Don't just make a statement, surround it with as much detail as possible. If it's something good that happened, really savor it. Wrap it in as much detail as you can. Who was there? How did it feel? What was said? Savoring something good that happens has what's called a doubler effect...your brain can't tell the difference between when the experience actually happened and when you are replaying it again in your mind.
If you choose to focus on something that you are grateful for make sure to build as much detail as you can as to why you are grateful for it. There is strong scientific evidence that having a gratitude practice increases our level of happiness. It helps us to maintain perspective during challenging times and to celebrate the good times. Feel good hormones are released into our bodies when we practice gratitude. It's really a simple, beautiful and impactful practice. Gratitude changes the lens by which we see the world.
1...
Intentionally do 1 random act of kindness each day. By giving to others, we not only make them feel good, but we in turn feel good. Generous behavior leads to happiness. It can be as simple as holding the door open for someone, or expressing gratitude for someone, paying someone a compliment, smiling at a stranger, offering to help someone in need. Any act of kindness whether big or small works. Acts of generosity activates circuits in the brain that promote well-being and I love to spread ripples of kindness out into the world!
The 5 - 3 - 1 practice...3 easy steps that we all have time for and can do each day to boost our baseline for happiness and help bring more richness into our lives. Give it a try and see what you think! I would love to hear your feedback. Drop me a comment or send me an email.
5...
Meditate for 5 minutes each day. This can be a simple breathing exercise, a guided meditation, a loving kindness meditation, whatever suits you and it can change from day-to-day depending on your mood. There are amazing proven benefits of taking just 5 minutes each day to meditate. Whether it's to start off your day on the right foot, or to serve as a way to de-stress and calm your mind mid-day or to reset and release at the end of the day, meditation is key.
If you are interested in a few that I love, take a peek at the "Meditations" tab and give a few of them a try!
3...
Journal or think about 3 good things that happened today and/or 3 things you are grateful for today. Don't just make a statement, surround it with as much detail as possible. If it's something good that happened, really savor it. Wrap it in as much detail as you can. Who was there? How did it feel? What was said? Savoring something good that happens has what's called a doubler effect...your brain can't tell the difference between when the experience actually happened and when you are replaying it again in your mind.
If you choose to focus on something that you are grateful for make sure to build as much detail as you can as to why you are grateful for it. There is strong scientific evidence that having a gratitude practice increases our level of happiness. It helps us to maintain perspective during challenging times and to celebrate the good times. Feel good hormones are released into our bodies when we practice gratitude. It's really a simple, beautiful and impactful practice. Gratitude changes the lens by which we see the world.
1...
Intentionally do 1 random act of kindness each day. By giving to others, we not only make them feel good, but we in turn feel good. Generous behavior leads to happiness. It can be as simple as holding the door open for someone, or expressing gratitude for someone, paying someone a compliment, smiling at a stranger, offering to help someone in need. Any act of kindness whether big or small works. Acts of generosity activates circuits in the brain that promote well-being and I love to spread ripples of kindness out into the world!
The 5 - 3 - 1 practice...3 easy steps that we all have time for and can do each day to boost our baseline for happiness and help bring more richness into our lives. Give it a try and see what you think! I would love to hear your feedback. Drop me a comment or send me an email.
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